Soul Mates
by potosw
Summary: Children were taught from a young age what the glow meant. It was a sign that you had found your Soul Mate.


pin/362047257519426383/

This is just a little story based on the above link.

From the time they were young, children were taught all about the Soul Mates. Everyone in the world had one; everyone was destined to find their own Soul Mate. When someone was in proximity to his or her Soul Mate, their chest would glow. Children knew that their mommies and daddies were Soul Mates, and that they would never have to worry about their Mommy or Daddy leaving, unless the parent died or went to war. In that case the remaining parent would need to search for a new Soul Mate or attempt to live on without one.

High School was different. There was very little dating since most of the girls was only interested in finding their future Soul Mate. The occasional tryst would come up, but that was very rare. Those girls were usually frowned upon and were then outcast from the school society. And, of course, the school society-the hierarchy of the popular and "nerdy" kids-still existed. Those who had already found their Soul Mate were at the top of the school.

For those who were nerdy and had yet to find a Soul Mate, life was difficult. These groups of kids were usually made fun of since they cared more for things of importance and the future rather than the arrest record of Lindsey Lohan. These students usually ended up finding their Soul Mate once in University or at the Graduation Ceremony. Still, the popular students entertained themselves with the nerdy kids' plight and humiliation.

It was the same thing day in and day out for Noah, who had immersed himself in the world of science. He wished to become a chemical engineer in the future. The captain of the football team, Michael, would constantly make fun of him. Each day Noah had to deal with the football captain mocking him for not having a Soul Mate and having no idea how to talk to women. Mike would go on and on about how Noah would never find his Soul Mate. Noah didn't know why Michael had such an intense need to always make fun of him for that. Everyone feared not finding their Soul Mate. Having someone constantly bringing it up was not good for Noah's health. Stress never agreed well with him and always sent him running to the restroom. There was also the fact that Mike would beat him up…

Michael happened to be in Noah's calculus and English class. The jock secretly was pretty good at math, but he would never let his friends know that. He refused to be titled a nerd. The only one who had any inkling at his skill in math was Noah. That was one of the reasons he beat up the stupid nerd all the time, to keep his mouth shut. English, however, Mike was bad at. Michael didn't care what a preposition was, and he had no use for this alliteration crap the teacher was rambling about. So, instead, he decided to entertain himself by kicking at the back of Noah's seat. He knew that it annoyed the nerd, and it was fun to see how the nerd would react.

Noah sighed in annoyance. He knew that there was nothing he could do that would make Mike stop. All it would do was make Michael act up even more. So, he attempted to ignore the constant thumping at the back of his seat. He also knew that not reacting would only make things worse. After about ten minutes of constant thumping, Michael began to speed up his thumping with the addition of poking Noah in the back. Noah had no idea how the teacher hadn't noticed yet. He was about to turn around to ask Michael to stop when the teacher called on him.

"Noah, are you and Mr. Simmons having a problem?" she asked. The teacher, Mrs. Hatrick, had no room in her schedule to deal with disruptive students. She had to teach these kids the material so they could pass the standardized test. Otherwise, she would be stuck with them for another year. And this Noah kid, though a great student, was awkward. She didn't want to deal with him anymore. Michael Simmons, on the other hand, was a blundering idiot when it came to English. She was only passing him because his father was giving a nice "bonus" to her paycheck to the tune of $5000.

Noah couldn't believe that the teacher thought _he _was the one causing the issue. Still, he would not say anything. It was not his place. He had been raised better than that. Sighing, and looking at her, Noah shook his head. "No, ma'am, there is no problem." He heard Michael laughing behind him in a snide way. Noah glanced back at the jock and then to the teacher. "Michael was telling me an alliteration that he came up with. Would you like to hear it?"

"Do entertain us, Mr. Jude," she replied, dryly. The class would be over soon anyway. None of the brats cared what she had to say now. Soon the bell would ring and they would all leave. Then, she could go to the break room and have her lunch. Finally, she would have a break from these stupid kids. She could even call her husband, Josef.

"_What the hell are you doing?_" Mike whispered. He had a feeling that this nerd was about to cause him a world of trouble. The kid was good at words.

Not caring what the consequences would be, Noah looked back at Mike and smiled slightly. Oh, how he was going to enjoy seeing the anger creep into those blue eyes. Knowing that the jock could do nothing about it-yet-made it all the sweeter. Turning his attention back to the teacher, he replied, "Well, I don't know how well you'll like it, but it is grammatically correct. Hmm, how did it go? Yes, I remember now. He said, 'Mrs. Hatrick: the obtuse, obese ogre'. But, wouldn't that be assonance, ma'am?"

_You little shit_, she wanted to scream at the football player. Huffing out a sigh, Mrs. Hatrick forced a smile. "Yes, that's right, Noah. Michael, you can go to the Principal's office at the end of class with me. We have some things to talk about"

The bell rang as she finished speaking. Looking back and smiling gleefully at the red faced jock, Noah turned and left from the classroom. He knew that he would get beat up for what he had said and for the fact that Mike would be off the football team for a week for being written up, but Noah figured that it was worth it. He was going to get beat up anyway. And, he did get to see the anger and frustration in those clear, blue eyes. That was most enjoyable of all.

Gym class was Noah's least favorite class. He had never been much for the world of physical sports. He liked to watch sports. His favorite team was the Chicago Bears. Noah knew all of the different players and their stats. He knew about the coaches. But, this was high school, and every student was required to take gym class each year. There was no way to get out of it. There was no online option to get out of it. No, the school system made students take the class because there was always the possibility of finding a Soul Mate.

Noah had just left from the locker room's shower. He didn't want to be sweaty and gross for the rest of the day. The last thing he would want would be to find his Soul Mate and smell like a used tennis shoe. He wanted to look good for his future Soul Mate. He could only hope that he wouldn't meet his Soul Mate here.

The nerd was not all that impressive to look at. He had a small build, and the towel wrapped around him didn't make it any better. The other guys always looked better, though Noah would never admit that he compared himself to other guys. That was weird.

He had just opened his locker when someone unseen slammed the locker door shut. It was lucky that Noah was able to react fast enough to avoid having his hand caught in the door. That had happened once before and was not something he wanted to live through again. Looking at who had closed the door, Noah found none other than Michael. It looked like the jock had decided to sit in on this gym class. He was dressed in black basketball shorts and no shirt-only a towel slung over his muscled shoulders.

"Lookie here, little Noah all alone in the locker room," Mike commented before punching the smaller guy hard in the stomach. Watching Noah crumple to the floor gave him little satisfaction any longer. It had grown old, and for some reason he didn't like it as much. It was like it was hard for him to see the nerd in pain. It was weird. Still, the kid had got him kicked off the team for not just a week but a whole month. He was stuck on the bench! "You got me in big trouble, assbutt. You knew that Hatrick would get me stuck on the bench. She got me stuck there for a month!"

Noah glared up at Michael. He hated looking up at this kid all the time and being in pain. He hated being such a submissive fool for the jock. Why was it that the jock took so much joy in tormenting him? Well, he couldn't stand it. He needed to _do something_. With adrenaline pumping through him, Noah punched his enemy square between the legs.

The pain caused his knees to buckle, and Mike went down. Never had his little nerd retaliated with physical force. Growling, he tackled the nerd, not caring what this looked like or who might hear what was going on. He was already benched, what else could happen? With the nerd pinned beneath him, Michael tried to punch Noah in the face. The nerd managed to evade the attack by turning away from the fist. It still made contact, but it caused less damage at the very least.

"Stay still, nerd," Michael ordered, grabbing the guy's wrists and pinning them above his head.

Noah knew that he was trapped now. There was nothing he could do. He was about to have his face pounded in. So much blind rage sat in those blue eyes. Noah wished that something would happen, something to make the jock stop. He did not want his face pounded to a pulp. At the very least, Mike had always avoided hitting him in the face, though he didn't know why. He wished that this constant cycle could change-the provoking and beatings. Noah blamed himself. He had asked for this.

Closing his eyes tightly, Noah resigned himself to the inevitable. But…nothing happened. Was this some sort of game? Was Mike waiting till he opened his eyes to beat him up? That had to be it. There was no other explanation. Noah opened his eyes and was met with a wide-eyed football captain and a warm, blue light emitting from somewhere close by. But, then he realized, that this light was not from somewhere close-by. No, it was from him…and from Michael too-though his was green.

It couldn't be, Noah thought while looking from himself to the jock who was still sitting atop him with his fist raised. Somehow, he thought that the fist would not ever come down. He knew what this meant, the glow. Everyone knew what it meant. He had found his Soul Mate.

"You're doing this. Stop it," Michael ordered, sounding shocked and angry. "You're trying to distract me. You're doing this with your science crap."

"Science doesn't even understand the glow, Mike," Noah answered. "I'm not-"

Mike punched the smaller guy straight in the face, breaking Noah's glasses. "Liar!" he bellowed as he struck the nerd again. He didn't care about the pain the glass caused. He didn't care how badly he was hurting…his Soul Mate? No, it could not be. It could not be this little nerd. He liked women. He had no interest in this sandy-haired, brown-eyed guy who was desperately trying to grab at his hands to get him to stop the beating.

"Who's there?" called a voice from somewhere.

"Crap," Michael swore. The voice had brought him out of his trance. He hadn't even known what he was doing anymore. Looking down at the nerd, he saw that he had broken Noah's nose and that shards of glasses had cut his face. There would soon be bruising too. And still, the glow was there from the nerd and so was his. "We're getting out of here," he stated while getting up and pulling Noah up to his feet. "Hurry up and get your clothes. We're leaving." He began walking away, not waiting to see if Noah would follow.

Michael knew the locker room well. He spent so much time here. He was quickly able to find the back exit before anyone caught him. The back exit led to the back of the gym. Very few people came here. It was also the end of the school day. Very few people were even on campus anymore. Hopefully, the nerd would find his way back here. They would need to talk. No one could know about this. There had to be a means to reverse this. Luckily, the glow was gone now.

The back door opened slowly and out came the nerd. He face was still bloodied, his hands had his own blood on them, his belt was undone, and his shirt was on inside-out. Noah was an absolute mess. He wasn't the clean-cut guy that Michael was so used to making fun of. He had to wonder why it was always Noah that he picked on the most. He had thought that Noah was just an easy target. He wasn't sure now. The glow, his glow, was there now when the nerd was close.

"You're a mess," Mike commented, not really knowing what else to say.

"No shit, Sherlock," Noah answered. He looked down at his shirt and noticed that it was on inside-out. That wasn't right. Not really caring what the football captain thought, he took off the shirt and turned it to face the right way. He tried pulling it back over his head, but found it being pulled away.

"You're glowing again," Mike stated, pointing at the nerd's chest.

Noah sighed, still not looking at the jock. This was not supposed to happen. This was not what he had imagined for himself. He had imagined being with someone who would care for him, not beat him to a pulp on a daily basis. "Can I have my shirt?"

"Not till we figure what the hell is going on," Mike answered. "Why would this happen? You're the nerd. Can this happen by mistake?" When he didn't get an answer from the nerd, Mike began to get frustrated. He wanted answers. This Soul Mate thing could not be happening. He grunted and grabbed Noah's shoulder to push him against the wall. "Explain this to me!" He jabbed a finger into Noah's glowing chest.

Something changed in that instant. A jolt went through his hand. It was warm and inviting. It felt like all the things that comforted him-a mowed lawn, a new football, the warmth of clothes just from the dryer, and all the things he loved. It was the same for Noah. The feeling was something he had never had before, and he wanted to consume it entirely.

The moment passed, and Noah came back to himself. The feeling disappeared and he opened his eyes only to find himself much too close for comfort to the star football player. His hand was resting against the football player's face and his forehead against Mike's shoulder. He quickly pulled away and stared at the jock in surprise. He expected to be beat for what had happened.

But, nothing happened. Mike only stared at Noah for a moment. Mike only knew a little bit about the whole Soul Mate thing. He did know that there was supposed to be a moment of connection between the two Soul Mates for it to be true. That had to be what had just happened. He knew that the nerd was waiting for something to happen. The familiar fear was in Noah's eyes. Oddly enough, he didn't like the look. Something had changed.

"I don't know what's going on," Mike mumbled. "This-it-we're from different worlds in this school. I'm the popular one and you're the nerd. How could this happen? I'm not gay! Why would this happen?" He turned away from Noah and started pacing, ringing Noah's shirt in his hands. He turned back to face the nerd, who still was glowing like a Christmas tree. "Stop it," he snarled. Maybe if he scared Noah, the glow would go away. That didn't work. It only made Noah look at him in annoyance.

"Look, I didn't ask for this," Noah barked. He snatched his shirt from Michael and quickly put it on. He crossed his arms and looked the jock up and down. He had, at some point, put on a white shirt, but the glow was still visible. Curious, he placed the palm of his hand to Mike's chest. That same feeling of warmth came back, the need to be together with the warmth.

The warmth was suddenly taken away when Mike slapped Noah's hand away. It was a harsh shock, to have the odd feeling suddenly snatched away. He wanted to pursue it, but Noah didn't want to risk being beat again.

"You need a ride home," Mike stated.

That confused Noah. It was such a change of subject.

Seeing the confusion on the other's face, Mike went on, "You always take the bus home. You ended up missing the bus because of-all the stuff that's going on. Your parents will probably be yelling about your glasses and face. We'll clean you up and then I'll-"

"You're doing nothing for me," Noah broke in. He gestured between them. "This-whatever this is-it's not going to happen. I'd rather be alone than with you. I'd live in fear my whole life of always being beat. You do what you want, Mike. I can get home. Don't worry." He brushed by the jock, careful not to have too much contact. The last thing he needed was to have that feeling of warmth pull him back to the football player. He didn't look back when Mike called after him. No, he was not going to acknowledge what was happening.

A few months had passed now. Noah had avoided Michael to the best of his ability. The beatings had stopped. The taunts had stopped. All Noah had to put up with now was the football player trying to talk to him-and the glow anytime they were near each other. It was hard to hide it at first, but both had figured out how to keep it hidden from everyone. It seemed to be an unspoken rule between the two that neither would say anything.

Michael, however, was not enjoying this one bit. The distance that Noah had been keeping was hard for him, though he couldn't understand it. He wanted to be around the nerd. He wanted to talk to the nerd, but the blasted kid would barely say anything to him. Today, however, would be a good chance for him to talk to Noah. They had both been invited to a big school Christmas party. Whether Noah liked it or not, Mike was going to talk to him about this Soul Mates thing.

Noah stood in the kitchen of this party house. He didn't know many of the people here. For some reason one of the popular girls had invited him to this party. It was probably some sort of joke or bet that was going on, Noah figured. He didn't really care. He hadn't really cared for much of anything ever since the incident with Michael. Ever since that time, he had been depressed.

Leaving the kitchen, Noah walked into the family room. Loud Christmas music was playing. Kids were talking to each other, some were dancing, some were sitting on the couches, and some were taking drinks from the punch bowl on the center coffee table. Noah planned on sitting at one of the couches. He would be able to relax to some degree and have some punch if he wanted.

An easy path to his seat would not be in the cards however. Noah had been right in thinking that he had only been invited as some sort of joke. The hostess of the party, Tara, stuck her foot in the way of Noah's path to the couch. He tripped and managed to land face-first into the punch. The bowl tipped and spilled the rest of the contents onto his back. This, of course, caused everyone to start laughing. To continue the joke, someone threw glitter above him, which stuck to the wet clothing.

Noah stayed there for a moment, on all fours simply staring at the carpeting. Hadn't he dealt with enough this year. He had dealt with a bully only to find out that his bully was his Soul Mate. His grades had started to go down as a result. No one would help him out here. He knew better than to expect that. These kids would only laugh for a bit longer and then he could get up and leave. He would be the talk of the school, about what an embarrassment he was.

Someone, however, pulled him up to his feet. It was some random girl. He didn't know who she was, but judging from her over-done make-up and bright blonde hair, she was one of the head popular girls. He thought that he had seen her around Michael before and that her name was Anna. She pulled him under the mistletoe just as Michael happened to be entering the room.

She laughed loudly. "Oh no, Mikey! You got stuck with Four Eyes under the mistletoe!" She began laughing again and the others joined in. "That means you gotta kiss the freak."

Michael laughed slightly for show, but didn't say anything to Anna. He looked at Noah and noticed that he was all wet, his white sweater was stained red, and that he was covered in glitter. It seemed like his "friends" had only invited Noah as a joke. There was sadness in his eyes but there was also deadened acceptance of the situation. With the wet sweater, it was possible to make out a faint glow from Noah's chest. Mike smiled slightly, knowing that it was still there.

Unfortunately, Anna noticed the glow. She gasped loudly and pointed at it. "Holy shit on a stick, everyone! Ugly here has his Soul Mate in the room. You better not have picked me, freak!"

"Why would I choose someone as vapid as you, Anna?" Noah questioned. He noticed a slight smile on Michael's face. He didn't know why the other could be smiling. He looked around at all the "popular" people. With determination he hadn't felt in a long time, Noah continued, "It is not any of your concern who my Soul Mate is."

"I'd say it is," Mike interrupted. Everyone's attention turned to him now. First, he turned to Anna, who appeared to be very confused. "Anna," he stated while taking her hands. He could see how excited she got when he addressed her directly. "You know that you are one of the most popular girls on school grounds, but would everyone like you as much if they knew you are lying about already finding your Soul Mate?" The crowd gasped and pulled away. Anna had told everyone that she and Mike were Soul Mates. Mike had only found out recently about this. It was time that everyone knew the truth.

"_What the hell are you doing?_" Noah hissed, feeling very much like he was back in English class.

Mike smiled at his Soul Mate before turning to the crowd. "See, I found my Soul Mate recently. And that Soul Mate is in the room now. Want proof?" He pulled up his red sweater to reveal the green glow. "And now, I'll kiss him."

Noah was well aware of the collective gasp that came from the crowd when Michael pulled him close and pressed his lips to his. It felt so odd to have this. The warm feeling was back and it quickly spread through his whole body. God, how he wanted to indulge in this, but he knew better than this. He couldn't let Mike sacrifice his social life for him.

Pushing the jock away, he tried to glare at the other. He found it hard to look into those vulnerable blue eyes. It was the first time that Mike had ever been weak where he was concerned. It was a side of the football captain that Noah was unused to. But, this was something that had to be done, no matter how much he didn't want to.

"Another joke, Michael?" he shouted. "I don't know how you managed to conjure this trick up, but you do great work. Now your friends get to think that I'm gay. Congrats. The circle is now complete. You have entirely ruined my life." Noah pushed passed the football player, using his hand against the other's chest for one last chance to feel the warmth. Noah pushed through the crowd and to the front door. He quickly exited, not caring that he forgot his jacket and was wet in the snow.

Two minutes passed before someone grabbed Noah and spun him about face. The nerd was met with the intense eyes of the jock. He tried to look away, but the other pulled him tight against his chest and used a hand to make him look up. Noah could feel the warmth trying to work its way into his body. He wanted to deny it. He wanted to resist it.

"We have no choice. We are Soul Mates," Michael whispered. "Accept it."

Noah shook his head. "No, there is another choice." He pushed hard against Mike and escaped his grasp. From his jeans pocket, he pulled a small handgun. He looked at the cold, black metal in his hand for a moment before aiming it at himself. "If one part of the Soul Mates dies, the other can go on to find a new one. You can be free, Michael."

"What are you doing?!" the jock yelled. By this point the people from the party had come out. They all stood behind Michael, not knowing what to do. Some were yelling at Noah to drop the gun, others were crying, but most stood there without saying anything. Michael glanced from the people and then back to his nerd. "You can't do this. You are my Soul Mate. Give me the gun, Noah. Give me the hurt and the pain and the gun, Noah."

"No," he spat.

The trigger was pulled. A few of the girls screamed, but Mike wasn't focused on the fear of the people behind him. They hadn't noticed that the gun had misfired. The bullet hadn't come out. Noah was still here and alive. Without a second thought, he tackled the nerd and quickly tossed the gun far away. He glared down at Noah, who had tears in his eyes. The realization of what he had almost done must have just hit him. He didn't say a word but simply pulled Mike's face to his own to meet for a kiss. The two opposites from the worlds of popularity and nerd had become Soul Mates.


End file.
